


Greatest Regrets

by greerwatson



Category: RENAULT Mary - Works, The Charioteer - Mary Renault
Genre: Gen, ITOWverse, Metafiction, Renault Times
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-18
Updated: 2010-09-18
Packaged: 2018-05-19 21:18:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5981269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greerwatson/pseuds/greerwatson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ralph and Laurie read in the <i>Renault Times</i> that <a href="http://maryrenaultfics.livejournal.com/">maryrenaultfics</a> is being turned into a closed LiveJournal community.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Greatest Regrets

**Author's Note:**

> The _Renault Times_ began on [maryrenaultfics](http://maryrenaultfics.livejournal.com/) as a fun way to convey community announcements in the form of supposed newspaper articles. However, it evolved into a fictional newspaper that is delivered weekly to the characters of Renault's books, who thus keep up both with events on LiveJournal and with events in the ITOWverse.

_“It is with the greatest regret that we have to inform you…,”_ read Laurie.  He was expecting the newspaper article to continue with an obituary—presumably of another regular contributor among the members of the community.  To his shock, he read instead that **maryrenaultfics** was being closed to casual readers.  He wondered what the other characters would have to say about it.  Well, Ralph, anyway.  He had a few days leave, and was coming up from Bridstow; in fact, the train was due, provided there’d been no delays.

Laurie waited impatiently until he heard the key in the lock.

“Did you see this?” he asked Ralph when he came in.

“See what?” said Ralph.  He looked tired.

Laurie flapped the _Renault Times_ to draw his attention.

“Is that last week’s?”

“No, a special edition.  Hot off the press, as they say.  Here—” he handed the paper over “—read the lead article.”

Frustratingly, Ralph put the paper down on his chair and went to get himself a drink first.  It was, Laurie noted, even stronger than usual:  it must have been a bad day at the station.  Had there been a daylight raid?  It was an obvious target.

Ralph came back with his glass, picked up the paper from the seat of his chair, and sat down in one graceful twist of his body.  Laurie couldn’t help but notice this, even though he still felt outraged by the news.  Ralph took a swig, and set down the glass before shaking out the paper and turning to the headline.

He frowned and began to read, with mild puzzlement at first, then greater concern.  He picked up his drink without looking, and sipped steadily as his eyes shifted further and further down the page.

“Can they _do_ that?” Laurie burst out.

“Evidently they can,” said Ralph mildly, “since it seems they have.”

“But it’s _awful_ ,” protested Laurie.  “How _can_ they?”

“Well, as to ‘how’,” said Ralph, “ you’d have to ask someone who knows more about those ‘computer’ things of theirs than _I_ do.”  Seeing Laurie’s state, he managed to suppress an incipient grin to a mere twitch of the lips.  “Simonides, maybe—if you head off to the Clubhouse and find him in the Library there.”

Laurie stared at Ralph.  Was he making a _joke_?

“Or the Secretary.  She’s obviously familiar with the workings of the community … ‘on line’?  Is that the phrase?”

Laurie reached over and plucked the _Renault Times_ from Ralph’s hand.  “This is going to ruin everything,” he said, tapping the article firmly enough for the paper to dimple audibly.  “Maybe not instantly; but, in time, the community will wither.  You know what I mean:  how many are still active from the original membership back when **maryrenaultfics** was founded?  People drift away.  They get bored—feel they’re repeating themselves, there’s nothing new.”

“Something comes up,” Ralph put in.  He drained the drink.

“In what they call ‘Real Life’,” Laurie agreed, “as if _this_ life isn’t real.”  He hesitated:  this was a popular grumble among the characters, especially the major ones:  they got used to people’s participation and looked forward to what they’d say and do next:  it hurt to find oneself abandoned by a former … friend.  Yes, some characters would bitch about each and every defection:  could Ralph be trying to divert him from his point?

He wrenched the conversation back on course.  “Something comes up,” he repeated.  “We’ve seen it time and again.  If the community is to continue, then it _needs_ new members; and, if that is to happen, it has to attract them.  I quite understand that they don’t want to go out and proselytize.”  The idea repelled him.  “Nevertheless,” he insisted, “no one is going to join the community sight unseen.  Almost all of the members were, at one time, mere silent visitors who read the comments made by others.”

“‘Lurkers’ they call them,” Ralph put in.

Laurie had heard the term; but he preferred not to use it.  Lurking seemed more the activity of a thief than a potential member of the cherished community.

“Yes, there are some downright _devoted_ lurkers,” Ralph agreed.  “But it’s quite clear that any of them—well, any who wants to, at least—will simply, finally, join the community officially.  What’s wrong with that?”

“Well, nothing, but….”

“And, if you look carefully,” Ralph pointed out, “you’ll see that they do say that casual visitors will still be able to read the _older_ posts.  That covers the archived stories, too.  It’s not as though people won’t be able to browse around and see what **maryrenaultfics** is like.”

Laurie shook his head.  “That’s all very well, as far as it goes,” he said, “and it’s not that I’m not glad to hear it, but—”

“What more do you need?”

“Don’t people like to see the _life_ of the community?  As it’s going on?  Pop in regularly to see what’s up?  What _you’re_ talking about is more like…,” he searched, “…some sort of _fossil!_ ”

Ralph sighed.  “You need a drink,” he said firmly.  As Laurie started to protest, he shook his head and got up.  “No, if _you_ don’t, then certainly _I_ need another—and I’m not drinking alone.”  He crossed to the old sideboard with the bottles on top, refilled his glass, fetched out another, and poured Laurie a stiff one.

“Look,” he said, coming back to hand it to the younger man, “if you read the article carefully, you’ll see that this change was not made lightly.  The moderators had reasons—good reasons—for doing what they did.”

Laurie nodded.  “And the situation is still in flux, of course.  They do say that the decision may be reversed.”

“Well, perhaps it _will_ prove temporary,” Ralph said carefully, “—but there are hints there (if you notice) that even greater changes may be in the offing.”

It was true.  Laurie stared glumly at the drink without tasting it.  Ralph looked down at him, impatiently for a moment; then he realized that—in many ways—the other man saw the community, like the world of the clubhouse, as some Platonic ideal free of the worries of their own real world in _The Charioteer_.

He set down his glass, and reached for the paper on Laurie’s knees.  There was something down the page … ah, yes!

> Said one of the moderators, “This is a change that we've been considering for a while now, and was hastened by LJ's recent decision to enable crossposting to Facebook and Twitter.  The privacy and safety of our current members remains paramount.”

“Did you see this bit?” he asked, and read it aloud.  “I’m not sure exactly what this ‘crossposting’ is, but I get the gist of their concerns, don’t you?  It’s a matter of _security_ —the security of the realm, you might say.   _Their_ realm, anyway:  the realm of the community.  There was an emergency:  they reacted.  That’s _responsible_.  God, Laurie, surely you understand that?”  Just in time, he saved himself from adding, “You should never have chucked the O.T.C.”; but something of his exasperation must have been visible.”

“But there’s more to it than that,” said Laurie.  He finally sipped his drink, but looked down at the worn carpet, still feeling depressed about the whole situation. 

“Maybe so, but nevertheless.  As our American friends like to put it, ‘Loose lips sink ships’,” said the sailor.

**Author's Note:**

> This ITOWverse story was written in response to [maryrenaultfics](http://maryrenaultfics.livejournal.com/) becoming a Members Only LiveJournal community on 11 September 2010.


End file.
